What is it?

It is its own car but crosses into Model S territory as well. The vehicle provided and tested, the Standard Plus, has a single electric motor that powers the rear wheels.

Range is said to be, from a full charge, around 460km. Like petrol and diesel fueled cars, however, that range depends on a few conditions such as traffic, weather, and driver.

Model 3 comes with a four-year 80,000km warranty, with the battery and drive unit covered for eight years or 160,000km.

Access to the Tesla Supercharging service is on a pay per use basis.

What’s it cost?

The vehicle as tested topped out at $81,165.

The base price is $66K, then there’s the usual government and dealership charges.

Tesla ask $1400 for metallic paint, in this case a Deep Blue, and the autonomous driving package adds $8500.

The Long Range all-wheel drive model is $85,000 while the Performance model commands a $91,200 price tag.

Tesla S on the other hand is priced from $123,500.

The 3 is a fastback sedan with seating for five that bears some resemblance to the Model S, with its long nose, teardrop window-line and stubby tail.

The door handles look similar but operate differently. They don’t open automatically. Instead a press at the rear releases a longer section to use as the handle.

Rear lights are almost identical, but up front it’s bespoke Model 3.

A blunt and rounded nose holds LED headlights, with a similarity to a particular German brand — but it’s also distinctively Tesla.

Entry is different too. There’s no key. You install an app on your phone pair it with the car’s telematics.

Tesla also provide a couple of smart cards called Concierge Keys, with a sensor located in the centre console and another on the driver’s side centre pillar.

Rubber is from Michelin, with 235/45/ZR18 Pilot Sport fitted to charcoal aero alloys.

Head inside and the charcoal interior is broken by a car width piece of wood inlay and a single, landscape-oriented, 15.0-inch touchscreen.

Think large tablet turned sideways. There’s no dash as such. Everything is accessed from the screen, including audio controls, aircon, energy graph, map, and gadgets.

There is a pair os USB ports up front, a pair in the rear, and 455 litres of bootspace, with a hidden compartment in the rear — and naturally there’s a “frunk” or front trunk.

Aircon is a pinch and move setup to direct airflow, and although initially fiddly, it becomes easy to use with practice.

You also need to get your head around the doors. There’s no handles, a simple press pad pops the door open a couple of centimetres.

The interior is minimalistic and it is effective. Even the tiller is minimalistic, with two roller switches that have some left and right movement for activating certain functions such as the cruise control distance.

Voice control is also on board.

For navigation there are voice controls too.

When it comes to searching for charging stations, it’s definitely best to start with Tesla Destination, otherwise you’ll be directed to a non-Tesla compatible charger.

For self-driving the exterior cameras and sensors require clear roadside markers. A steering wheel icon shows on the screen.

The drive engagement lever is located on the right of the steering column, which is fully adjustable for reach and rake via the screen. Press down once for lane keeping, twice for auto drive and cruise, with light hands needed on the steering wheel.

The system will sense if the hands are fully removed, otherwise it tugs gentley at the wheel to align on the go. It’s easily disengaged by a press of the brake pedal or a press again on the lever.

Related

Dave Conole hails from Perth where he co-hosted a car show on one of
the city's major community radio stations. Although he's had formal
training in stage, TV, and film, it's his face for radio that gave him
his start in the automotive field, both reviewing and motorsport
commentary. After moving to Sydney in 2004, Dave has worked for some of
Australia's biggest media groups and is the anchor commentator at Sydney
Motorsport Park. This has lead to anchoring major events such as the
Top Gear Festival (and, no, he didn't get punched by Jeremy).